A man in his 70s has died and four people were injured after fires broke out minutes apart in two houses on neighbouring streets.
West Midlands Fire Service said crews were first called to a semi-detached property on Lunt Place in Bilston at 02:19 BST on Saturday, before it received a call to a second house fire on the adjoining Marbury Drive at 02:30.
Four people from the property on Lunt Place were taken to hospital with injuries not believed to be life-threatening, and a man in his 70s, found at the detached property on Marbury Drive, died at the scene, the service added.
West Midlands Police said we are treating the fires as connected and are investigating both of them.
A resident on Lunt Place said they had been woken up in the early hours of Saturday morning by a loud bang.
"Me and neighbours rushed out, the front door was on fire and the flames went up very quickly," they added.
The force added that it was working alongside the fire service and officers remained at the scene.
